September 23, 2014

In case you've missed some of them, the stories that fuel each DLC of Fallout 3. Bethesda Softworks released five DLC packs for Fallout 3 for all platforms. These add-ons are Operation: Anchorage, The Pitt, Broken Steel, Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta. Each pack adds new quests, items, perks, achievements and other content to Fallout 3. The Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition, released on October 13, 2009 for all platforms, includes all five add-ons packs. So, we start with the first one - Operation: Anchorage.

This article is divided in a total of two pages. The first page includes Operation: Anchorage and The Pitt DLC and the second page include Broken Steel, Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta DLC stories. There is also our "Rank the Fallout 3 DLC" Social Media discussion video (the first video below), and we could really use your thoughts. Enjoy!

1. Operation: Anchorage

Once the add-on is downloaded, the quest objective for Operation: Anchorage will be activated by a radio broadcast stating, "This is Defender Morrill. Any Outcasts listening on this frequency report to sector 7-B, Bailey's Crossroads. This is a high-priority message; backup is needed at our location. Any personnel listening on this frequency, please report at once." A marker will be shown on the world map near the Red Racer factory.

The Brotherhood of Steel Outcasts have set up in the remains of the VSS Facility, a pre-War compound of Virtual Strategic Solutions, Inc., and are trying to unseal the door of the VSS Armory which they think contains advanced combat gear and weapons. The only way to unseal this door appears to be by surviving a military virtual reality simulation of Operation: Anchorage and the only way to enter this simulation is via a computer interface device, like the Pip-Boy 3000.

So it comes down to the Lone Wanderer to go inside and complete a simulation of perhaps the greatest battle of the Fallout universe: the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from occupying Red Chinese troops. The simulation is set during the Anchorage campaign, which occurred between June 2076, when the T-51b power armor was first introduced, and January 2077, when Chinese forces were completely driven out of Alaska. Evidence locatable in the Outcast Outpost makes it clear that the simulation is not an accurate recreation of the battle in many important ways; however, these ways are never detailed but are blamed on General Chase, who was the military correspondent for the simulation program.

After exiting the simulation, the Lone Wanderer is allowed into the armory and can grab anything he/she wants. Opening the armory spurs a heated discussion between Defender Sibley and Protector McGraw, which culminates in Sibley and most of the other Outcasts starting a mutiny against McGraw and Olin. This is a battle that the Lone Wanderer can decide with no negative reputation to the Outcasts so long as they do not attack either McGraw or Specialist Olin.

2. The Pitt

The Pitt is the second add-on for Fallout 3. In contrast to Operation: Anchorage, The Pitt involves a more traditional quest line with several morally ambiguous choices. When The Pitt first loads, the player will be informed of a new radio distress signal from a runaway slave from The Pitt named Wernher, who informs the Lone Wanderer that he needs help in retrieving a cure for the mutations plaguing the town developed by The Pitt's raider boss, Ashur. In order to successfully reach Ashur, the player has to give up their gear temporarily.

The player then is able to familiarize themselves with a new weapon, the auto axe, and compete in a fighting arena called The Hole. The town itself consists of a large "dungeon" area (The Mill), an abandoned steel yard and a settlement which is divided into two districts: Downtown, which is inhabited by slaves and Haven/Uptown, occupied by their masters, the Slavers.

The main quest involves the player character taking on the role of a slave in order to investigate rumors that the raider boss of The Pitt has discovered a cure for mutations that have plagued many inhabitants of The Pitt. Troglitic Degeneration Contagion (TDC) is a degenerative disease that plagues all the inhabitants of The Pitt. According to Dr. Sandra Kundanika, it is the result of intensively concentrated ambient radiation exposure combined with the unique industrial toxins and pollutants in the region that surrounds what was once Pittsburgh, an effect that is intensified by the fact that half of the Pitt's inhabitants have resorted to cannibalism.

Marie, daughter of Sandra Kundanika and Ishmael Ashur, was born with a natural adaptive immunity to TDC, offering hope that one day a cure for the Pitt's whole population can be developed. So far, the efforts at synthesizing this cure have been slow-going, mostly because Marie is still a baby, and, being the only test subject, she must be treated with care. The Pitt has unique vendors, and you are able to return after you complete the story.

May 22, 2014

Fallout 3 Game of the Year Edition includes the original game as well as all five of the Fallout 3 Game Add-on Packs:Operation: AnchorageEnter a military simulation and fight in one of the greatest battles of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders. Gain access to unique armor, weapons, and exotic gadgets while you build and command interactive Strike Teams to win the battle and defeat the Chinese base.The Brotherhood Outcasts are trying to acquire advanced military technology, and the only way to open the vault containing these relics is by completing a tactical simulation only you can enter. In Operation: Anchorage you will re-live the epic Battle of Anchorage from Fallout lore. Find your way into the simulation, stripped of resources, and survive within the rules set up by the simulation’s creators. The Chinese red army is everywhere, so secure the surrounding mountain side and fight your way into the Chinese base.

The PittAllows you to travel to the post-apocalyptic remains of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and become embroiled in a conflict between slaves and their Raider masters. Explore a sprawling settlement ravaged by time, neglect, nuclear radiation, and moral degradation. The Pitt is filled with morally grey choices, shady NPCs, new enemies, new weapons, and much more. The Pitt opens with a desperate radio message, and a meeting with its sender, an escaped slave named Wernher. Wernher claims that the leader of “The Pitt” has created a cure for mutations… and he needs you to go in and retrieve it. From there, the player can proceed in a number of ways, in true Fallout 3 style. Do you fight your way in, or disguise yourself as a slave? Ally with the slaves, or join their Raider overlords? The Pitt is very morally ambiguous – there’s no real right or wrong, just choices to be made, sides to be chosen, and a mystery that could send shockwaves throughout the entire Wasteland.

Broken Steel

Continue your existing Fallout 3 game and finish the fight against the Enclave remnants alongside Liberty Prime. Broken Steel moves the level cap for your character from 20 to 30, allowing you to experience even more of the game, including new perks and achievements. You may have dealt the Enclave a serious blow at Project Purity, but their forces are still out there, and still pose a grave threat to the people and security of the Capital Wasteland. In Broken Steel, you’ll continue your current Fallout 3 character past the events of Project Purity, and work with the Brotherhood of Steel to eradicate the Enclave threat once and for all. Travel to new locations like the Olney Powerworks, wield destructive new weapons like the Tesla Cannon, and fight powerful new creatures like the Super Mutant Overlord.

Point Lookout

Opens up a massive new area of the Wasteland – a, dark, murky swampland along the coast of Maryland. So hop on the ferry to the seaside town of Point Lookout, for the most mysterious and open-ended Fallout 3 DLC adventure yet. Buy a ticket and hop onboard the Duchess Gambit, as Tobar the Ferryman takes you to the strange seaside town of Point Lookout. Point Lookout is the most open-ended DLC yet, and allows you to explore a huge, swampy wasteland any way you’d like. A completely new quest line allows you uncover the town’s hidden secrets and wield powerful new weapons like the Double-Barrel Shotgun against the swamp’s dangerous, and deformed, denizens.

Mothership Zeta

Defy hostile alien abductors and fight your way off of the massive Mothership Zeta, orbiting Earth miles above the Capital Wasteland. Mothership Zeta takes Fallout 3 in an entirely new direction – outer space. Meet new characters and join with them in a desperate bid to escape the Aliens’ clutches. To do so, you’ll wield powerful new weapons, like the Alien Atomizer, Alien Disintegrator, and Drone Cannon, and deck yourself out in brand new outfits, like the Gemini-Era Spacesuit and even Samurai Armor. A strange Alien signal is being broadcast throughout the Capital Wasteland, originating from a crashed UFO. Is it a distress call, or something far more sinister? That question is answered when you find yourself beamed aboard an enormous Alien spacecraft, with only one alternative – to fight your way to the bridge of the ship and secure your escape.